Cruyff: Don't write Barcelona off

Former Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff said Monday he is baffled by people writing the team off in the battle to be Spanish league champions. "There are four titles in play this year and Barça have not lost any of them yet," Cruyff said at a news conference before a match between Tunisia and Catalonia, for whom he is coach. "I don't know why some people are so obsessed by it," he said. Barcelona have struggled in recent away games, losing 1-0 at Getafe on Saturday, and lie second in the Spanish league six points behind bitter rivals Real Madrid. Cruyff said people writing off Barcelona did not know the team. "Everything has been exaggerated. It seems most people don't know the quality of Barça. Things are not going badly just because they have lost one match." A three-time European Footballer of the Year, 64-year-old Cruyff started his career as a teenager at Ajax before going on to enjoy huge success with Barcelona, whom he then coached to the 1992 European Cup and four straight league titles between 1991 and 1994.